Red Bull GRC Fantasy Challenge: Atlantic City Preview

For the third time this season, the Red Bull GRC Fantasy Challenge takes on a unique doubleheader format at Bader Field in Atlantic City. Instead of picking the top three drivers in a single round, like Memphis, Louisville, or Indianapolis, players will need to forecast two rounds worth of action, balancing both Saturday’s and Sunday’s race results.

Save for Mitchell deJong, every Supercar driver entered this weekend experienced this venue last season, meaning both drivers and teams have a handful of notes to work with on things like tire wear. But this year’s course is both shorter and run in the opposite direction, giving everybody a new and even playing field to work with as learning on the fly remains the most important quality in every practice and race session.

With that in mind, we’re back once again to give you our picks for this weekend’s action in Atlantic City. Here are this weekend’s driver groupings and our best advice:

Tier 1: Steve Arpin, Tanner Foust, Scott Speed

Top three in points, most recent three race winners, presumptive podium here last season… it’s anyone’s guess who will have the best weekend in Atlantic City. Just remember this: Speed was the one to pull out the win last year as Foust and Arpin used up their tires and faded late. With Speed intent on making a championship comeback after his Ottawa engine issues, the momentum is fully on his side, but his title rivals are out for redemption at this track.

Tier 2: Mitchell deJong, Sebastian Eriksson

Here’s a real toss-up. One driver, deJong, has three podiums and something to prove, after mechanical woes kept him out of the Indianapolis final and put him out of reach of the top three in points. The other, Eriksson, has Honda’s first Supercar victory in his pocket from Louisville, but little else by way of signature results this season. Do you bet on lightning to strike twice with Eriksson, or deJong to put his fluke from last month behind him?

Tier 3: The Field

If Patrik Sandell didn’t have bad luck this season, he’d have no luck at all. But the good news is that Subaru Rally Team USA’s newest driver was second at this course last season—and teammate Chris Atkinson’s qualifying results here proved that the WRX STI can conquer this track in the hands of the right driver. Elsewhere, Oliver Eriksson and Austin Dyne were on the edge of the podium in Indianapolis, and Cabot Bigham checked off his second heat win there.

Tiebreaker: GRC Lites

Last year, Christian Brooks claimed his first heat win right here in New Jersey. Nearly a year later, he’s a multi-race winner and championship threat for Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. Cyril Raymond remains the favorite at every event as a dominant force, but all three of last year’s Lites podium finishers—Alex Keyes, Travis PeCoy, and Colin Braun—return with their eyes on more hardware on this year’s revised course. All we can tell you here is to trust your gut!